Venezuelan earthquakes leave ‘devastating number of deaths’

{"text":[[{"start":8.9,"text":"Venezuela’s acting president Delcy Rodríguez said 32 people had been killed and 700 injured after a pair of powerful earthquakes rocked the capital Caracas."}],[{"start":19.85,"text":"Rodríguez declared a state of emergency late on Wednesday in the wake of the earthquakes, some of the strongest recorded in the South American country."}],[{"start":29.1,"text":"The first, with a magnitude of 7.2, hit near the Caribbean coastal town of Morón, about 168km west of Caracas, at 6.04pm, according to the US Geological Survey. It was followed less than a minute later by a larger 7.5-magnitude shock 16km away. "}],[{"start":48.95,"text":"The USGS said that “high casualties and damage are probable, and that the disaster is likely widespread”."}],[{"start":55.650000000000006,"text":"Rodríguez, who has led Venezuela with the backing of the Trump administration since the US captured authoritarian president Nicolás Maduro in January, said rescuers from other countries would arrive in the coming hours. She also thanked the Trump administration for its support."}],[{"start":71.05000000000001,"text":"“Dozens of buildings have collapsed and we are engaged in the arduous task of rescuing the lives that God allows us to save,” she said in a video address."}],[{"start":80.50000000000001,"text":"In a post on his Truth Social platform, US President Donald Trump said the earthquakes were “massive in scale and have left a devastating number of deaths”, adding that the US “stands ready, willing, and able to help”."}],[{"start":93.45000000000002,"text":"“We will be there for our new and great friends,” he wrote."}],[{"start":97.05000000000001,"text":"Electricity and telecommunications networks were down in much of Caracas, while videos circulating on social media appear to show buildings collapsing into rubble. "}],[{"start":106.15,"text":"The country’s main international airport, located 27km from the capital, was also badly affected and would remain closed until further notice, Rodríguez said."}],[{"start":116.75,"text":"Interior minister Diosdado Cabello said on state television that “some people may be desperate” and that aid and rescue efforts were under way."}],[{"start":125.15,"text":"The oil-rich country is in talks with the IMF to restructure its public debt, which ballooned under Maduro and his predecessor Hugo Chávez. The country is set to reveal a $240bn debt pile, making it the largest sovereign restructuring in history, the FT reported on Tuesday."}],[{"start":143.85,"text":"In an earlier televised address, Rodríguez said her government had been contacted by “multilateral financial institutions offering to provide support”."}],[{"start":152.35,"text":"Across Caracas on Wednesday night, residents and emergency responders rushed to dig people out of the rubble."}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":159.29999999999998,"text":"In the central San Bernardino neighbourhood, Maduro’s son, lawmaker Nicolás Maduro Guerra, was surveying the damage. In the historic neighbourhood of El Paraíso families set up camps to spend the night in the street for fear of aftershocks."}],[{"start":174.95,"text":"Gustavo Duque, the mayor of Chacao, a wealthy eastern district of the capital, said that there had been fatalities, without giving a figure, and that at least 18 people had been injured. "}],[{"start":186.85,"text":"In the Chacao neighbourhood of Palos Grandes, residents and emergency services personnel worked to rescue people trapped beneath rubble. “My grandmother and my cousin are trapped. We don’t know anything,” said Rodolfo Pérez."}],[{"start":200.1,"text":"In the nearby upscale neighbourhood of El Rosal, office workers piled into the streets as buildings wobbled overhead. The JW Marriott hotel, where a corps of US diplomats is based, was evacuated as debris fell to the street. All personnel were accounted for, the state department said."}],[{"start":218.5,"text":"Javier Pérez was driving in La Guaira state, where the airport is located, when the quakes struck. “A building collapsed as I went by, and the shaking almost flipped my car over,” he told the FT. “It was craziness.”"}],[{"start":238.85,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1782372378_5166.mp3"}